I will be releasing Outremer Friday, July 1st. It's ready to go, and I have an advance print copy from Lulu and it looks nice. It's fairly large - almost 300 pages, but it's not, I think, bloated. It just has a lot of setting to cover. There are name generators, lists of titles, clothing, timelines, and other space-taking but important things- important for setting flavor, that is.
With the probability of an Outremer Companion in the future, I don't see any reason to wait any longer. The Companion(s) will be covering a lot of peripheral stuff that is cool, but not essential. I hope to write a few articles myself, but the best thing would be articles submitted by folks out there.
-clsh
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Monday, June 27, 2011
Skype interview
Rich Rogers at the Canon Puncture podcast interviewed me over Skype this spring, and the interview is just released - Canon Puncture
I'd never even used Skype before this. Now we use it to game live with Klaxon in Florida every week. Neat technology!
-clash
I'd never even used Skype before this. Now we use it to game live with Klaxon in Florida every week. Neat technology!
-clash
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Adam's OHMAS!
I tripped across this - a fellow named Adam is/was running OHMAS. I LOVE the Actual Play recaps! Brilliant!
Adam's OHMAS
Visit! Go! :D
-clash
Adam's OHMAS
Visit! Go! :D
-clash
The Outremer Companion
I am thinking I shall publish a Companion to Outremer - free for download, printed at cost - made up of contributions of various sorts to Outremer. This may include the two pieces I referred to earlier in this blog - the linguistic references and the village naming tables - if I can do them justice or find someone else who can do this. Other contributions could include player characters, NPCs, essays on trade and cultures, articles on the geography of the Outremer, creatures of all sorts, illustrations, maps, and anything else which would pertain to the game and setting.
Why? Outremer is a deep, deep setting, and ripe for such a delving. Also, I would like to involve customers and friends in fleshing out the setting. I would really enjoy it, both in the making and in the actuality, and would volunteer my time to edit and assemble the Companion. If it's successful, there could be other Companions down the line, and I may make this concept available for other games - StarCluster 3 and OHMAS would both be prime candidates.
-clash
Why? Outremer is a deep, deep setting, and ripe for such a delving. Also, I would like to involve customers and friends in fleshing out the setting. I would really enjoy it, both in the making and in the actuality, and would volunteer my time to edit and assemble the Companion. If it's successful, there could be other Companions down the line, and I may make this concept available for other games - StarCluster 3 and OHMAS would both be prime candidates.
-clash
Monday, June 20, 2011
More stuff for Look! Up In the Sky!
Worked a bit on Look! Up In the Sky! last night. All I am doing with the game is edit and layout. Klax is the writer and designer. Klax had sent me two files just before I left for Montreal, and I hadn't had time to do anyting with them. They were Vehicle Design and Weapons Design. For vehicles, design works like the old SC 2 vehicle design system - vehicles are designed from the ground up, rather than modified from existing vehicles as is SC 3, IHWSC, and Cold Space. The big difference is that costs are given in both Lifestyle for personal purchase, and in Association Resource Points for group purchase. It works well, and I like the dual costing. I will probably use it in the future!
The Weapon Design system is like SC2 and SC3's system - a group of standard weapons are given, and you can modify by steps them on several axes, so long as the changes equal zero. For example, you can raise the steps to make a weapon do more Damage, and add a firing Mode - say Full Automatic fire - but you have to work it down the same number of steps by decreasing Concealability and increasing Cost. Costs are personal, in Lyfestyle only. The group does not purchase weapons for individuals.
So far, it's really looking good!
-clash
The Weapon Design system is like SC2 and SC3's system - a group of standard weapons are given, and you can modify by steps them on several axes, so long as the changes equal zero. For example, you can raise the steps to make a weapon do more Damage, and add a firing Mode - say Full Automatic fire - but you have to work it down the same number of steps by decreasing Concealability and increasing Cost. Costs are personal, in Lyfestyle only. The group does not purchase weapons for individuals.
So far, it's really looking good!
-clash
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Roludothon Pics
Here's the StarCluster group:
Jocelyn played the uplifted housecat Captain, who refused to make a decision.
Luc played the centauroid construct who was brilliant at following procedures, and helpless without them.
Conan played the excitable Chimpanzee Engineer who was always trying to take things over, because, y'know, he was just better at it.
El played the uplifted Harpy Eagle pilot, who wanted to fly away.
Chris played the uplifted Crocodile who never saw a problem he couldn't shoot.
Here's the Outremer Group:
El played the Edessan Faris (Knight), an Alevi Muslim.
Charles played the Jewish Kabbalist from Damascus. Jeffrey's brother-in-law.
Denis played the Brewer from Acre, who was a half-Djinn, and Anglican.
Charles II played the Aleppan Magus of Djibril, a Sunni Muslim.
Jeffrey played the Jewish Mechanist from Acre, who made an artificial hound.
Chris played the penniless Armenian Crusader, an Orthodox Christian.
Graham played the Cypriot Esotericist, a Roman Catholic.
-clash
Jocelyn played the uplifted housecat Captain, who refused to make a decision.
Luc played the centauroid construct who was brilliant at following procedures, and helpless without them.
Conan played the excitable Chimpanzee Engineer who was always trying to take things over, because, y'know, he was just better at it.
El played the uplifted Harpy Eagle pilot, who wanted to fly away.
Chris played the uplifted Crocodile who never saw a problem he couldn't shoot.
Here's the Outremer Group:
El played the Edessan Faris (Knight), an Alevi Muslim.
Charles played the Jewish Kabbalist from Damascus. Jeffrey's brother-in-law.
Denis played the Brewer from Acre, who was a half-Djinn, and Anglican.
Charles II played the Aleppan Magus of Djibril, a Sunni Muslim.
Jeffrey played the Jewish Mechanist from Acre, who made an artificial hound.
Chris played the penniless Armenian Crusader, an Orthodox Christian.
Graham played the Cypriot Esotericist, a Roman Catholic.
-clash
Friday, June 17, 2011
Outremer - Suggestions From the Playtesters
I've got a couple of suggestions from the Outremer playtesters I haven't yet acted on. I haven't acted on them yet because I'm not quite sure how to approach them. Both stem from the fact that the Appendix of Naming Tables was very well received - the tables are broken down by linguistic/ethnic group, and really help in naming characters. These are both extensions of that idea, and can be considered together, though they need to be implemented separately.
First off is a set of linguistic phrase tables - basically common things characters can insert into their speech to give local flavor. Basically the problem here is these languages are obscure at best - outside of Arabic and Turkish - that some of them are completely postulated - such as Outremer Frankish and Edessan, and that they all change over time. This will take some serious research into the languages, and will delay the release of Outremer. Should I release it later on, as a supplement? A big decision!
Second is a name generator for villages and small towns. Cities and large towns show on the maps, but the smaller settlements would need creation by the group and/or GM. The problem? Well, first of all languages, and for that see the above, but also naming patterns. The Arabs generally reinstated an Arabicized version of the old Semitic names, except where they didn't know, but the Crusaders used a hodge-podge of techniques - Latin and Greek names unused since classical times, assigning biblical names to places they thought appropriate - and were frequently wrong! - naming places after geographical features in Frankish tongues, assigning fortress or castle names to nearby towns, renaming settlements after saints and warriors, and the like. the Turks sometimes "Turkified" existing place names - Antioch became Antakya, Smyrna became Izmir - but they didn't differentiate between classical names and Semitic names. They also renamed places by translating the meaning into Turkish, or by commemorating ancient heroes. The Armenians? Who the heck knows? Armenian place names are just GONE! Again, a lot of research, no one method, and missing information I would have to flat out make up. Is it worth the time it will take? Should I delay Outremer until this appendix is finished?
By the way - I bought two games I have wanted for some time - Amber and Over the Edge - up at the Roludothon. I'm hip deep in Amber now. I want to re-write it as a Blood Games II game. The various magics work up well as Paths of Power, and the dice pool mechanic wold be slick. Don't worry! I won't! I just WANT to! :D
-clash
First off is a set of linguistic phrase tables - basically common things characters can insert into their speech to give local flavor. Basically the problem here is these languages are obscure at best - outside of Arabic and Turkish - that some of them are completely postulated - such as Outremer Frankish and Edessan, and that they all change over time. This will take some serious research into the languages, and will delay the release of Outremer. Should I release it later on, as a supplement? A big decision!
Second is a name generator for villages and small towns. Cities and large towns show on the maps, but the smaller settlements would need creation by the group and/or GM. The problem? Well, first of all languages, and for that see the above, but also naming patterns. The Arabs generally reinstated an Arabicized version of the old Semitic names, except where they didn't know, but the Crusaders used a hodge-podge of techniques - Latin and Greek names unused since classical times, assigning biblical names to places they thought appropriate - and were frequently wrong! - naming places after geographical features in Frankish tongues, assigning fortress or castle names to nearby towns, renaming settlements after saints and warriors, and the like. the Turks sometimes "Turkified" existing place names - Antioch became Antakya, Smyrna became Izmir - but they didn't differentiate between classical names and Semitic names. They also renamed places by translating the meaning into Turkish, or by commemorating ancient heroes. The Armenians? Who the heck knows? Armenian place names are just GONE! Again, a lot of research, no one method, and missing information I would have to flat out make up. Is it worth the time it will take? Should I delay Outremer until this appendix is finished?
By the way - I bought two games I have wanted for some time - Amber and Over the Edge - up at the Roludothon. I'm hip deep in Amber now. I want to re-write it as a Blood Games II game. The various magics work up well as Paths of Power, and the dice pool mechanic wold be slick. Don't worry! I won't! I just WANT to! :D
-clash
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